Ji Han Grand Commander

Chapter 185 179. Wooden Courtyard
"Ahem... Why did Miss Guan suddenly say this..."

Feng Xi had been single for two lifetimes, so he had quite a bit of theoretical knowledge, but zero practical experience. Suddenly, he was teased by Guan Yinping and almost lost his mind. He could only cough twice to steady himself.

"Why? You and I both have marriages arranged by the late emperor. All that's left is to get married. What's there to be said?"

Guan Yinping rolled her eyes at Feng Xi, feeling that he was even more like a grown-up girl than she was, being timid and coy.

"Miss, why don't we quickly check if there is any smoke or fire in the mountains? After all, the mountain wind is fierce and we shouldn't stay for long."

Feng Xi hurriedly changed the subject and turned to business. Guan Yinping snorted and simply went along with it, looking up at the blue sky.

There were a few wisps of clouds in the sky today, but the eye-catching column of smoke was absent.

After eating the roast rabbit, the two found a small hill with a wide view. After watching for an incense stick of time, they still could not find any signs of fire.

"Nerd, could it be that those people have left? There are no people in those villages at the foot of the mountain. I'm afraid it's even harder to live in the mountains. Maybe they have moved to other places."

Guan Yinping thought about it and proposed a possibility.

After all, many people fled to Jingzhou to escape the war in the north. However, Jingzhou has also been in constant war since the Battle of Chibi, and many people have moved back north or to the east and west.

This is also one of the reasons why nine out of ten houses in Jingzhou are now empty.

Guan Yinping thought, no matter how these people retired, they still needed food and drink, right? How could they get so many supplies by staying in the mountains without socializing with others? Now that the Zhangshan area was in such a state of decline, it was estimated that the people in the mountain had already left.

"Wait a little longer, wait a little longer...what if..."

Feng Xi was patient. When Old Liu visited the Prime Minister, he had to pay him three visits. He would just spend one more day to confirm the situation. What was there that he couldn't wait for?
"If you are impatient, you can go back to Jiangling first and leave me here alone."

Feng Xi remembered that he was not alone now and Guan Yinping was beside him, so he hurriedly gave Guan Yinping a few words, worried that she would feel bored.

Unfortunately, Feng Xi didn't realize that his words were too straight-forward. As expected, Guan Yinping snorted coldly after hearing it.

"If you want to wait, I can wait here with you. Why do you have to use words to bully others?"

Feng Xi scratched his head, not knowing why Guan Yinping was angry. This battle was too difficult for him, even more unpredictable than fighting against the 100,000-strong Wei army.

Helplessly, Feng Xi could only put aside these distracting thoughts and concentrate on looking at the sky that was shining through the forest.

Fortunately, hard work pays off. Half an hour later, Feng Xi finally saw a thin wisp of smoke rising from the northeast. Although it was not black smoke, it was still particularly conspicuous against the blue sky.

"Look there, Miss."

Feng Xi pointed to the location of the smoke from the cooking stove and reminded Guan Yinping. Guan Yinping also saw it. The two looked at each other, nodded, and started to move towards the location of the smoke from the cooking stove.

The location was obviously deep in a forest. Both of them were extremely alert and walked into the forest cautiously.

It's strange to say, although it should have been a rugged and difficult forest, the two found several roads that seemed to be deliberately dug by humans. However, these roads are also relatively hidden, and if they don't go straight in that direction, they probably won't be of any help.

After walking for another half an hour in the dark forest, they suddenly saw a light ahead, which made them realize that they might have found the right place.

The two walked a few dozen steps and left the dense forest from the light. In front of them was a cleared space with a mud and wood courtyard in the middle. The smoke they saw was coming out of the courtyard. Feng Xi and Guan Yinping looked at each other, and Feng Xi walked forward and knocked on the gate.

“Boom boom… squeak…”

Feng Xi never thought that the gate would open after he knocked twice, and there was no one behind the door. It seemed that he opened the door by himself.

Guan Yinping was startled, but Feng Xi didn't feel anything. It was just an automatic door, but he acted as if no one had seen it before.

"Hello, is anyone home...?"

Although the door was open, Feng Xi still politely asked at the door and did not blindly go in. Firstly, it was impolite, and secondly, the situation inside was unknown, so for safety reasons Feng Xi would not take any risks.

However, as the door slowly opened, the scene inside appeared in front of the two of them. Both Feng Xi and Guan Yinping were stunned and speechless for a while.

There were many wooden men standing in various postures in the courtyard. Some of them were wearing cloth clothes and cloth shoes, as the old man had said before, while more of them were naked, maintaining the appearance of later works of art, in various postures, just placed in the courtyard.

"Xiu Yuan, what...what is this..."

Guan Yinping was so shocked that she actually called Feng Xi by his courtesy name, which was enough to show the fearless Guan Yinping's mood at the moment.

Although Feng Xi was also surprised, the perspective of future generations helped him calm down. He looked around and found that there were not only wooden figures in human form in the courtyard, but also many wooden figures with animal characteristics, such as lion and tiger shapes, spider shapes, and even those that were a fusion of animal and human forms.

If someone who didn't know the situation came here, they would think it was the base of some crazy scientist.

"We have come here specially to visit you. I wonder if the host is home?"

However, Feng Xi calmed himself down and continued to ask questions, ignoring these wooden men.

“Hehehe… Hehehe…”

Suddenly, a laugh came from somewhere. It came from a woman. It sounded playful but also chilling.

"Who is it? Who is playing tricks here?!"

Guan Yinping frowned and shouted loudly, but her shouting did not stop the other party, but made him laugh even more wildly.

Feng Xi frowned and tried to identify the source of the sound, but there was no trace. The woman's laughter seemed to come from all directions, as if it was everywhere. Even if he had sharp ears and eyes, he couldn't distinguish it.

"We have no ill intentions. We just heard that there are skilled craftsmen in the mountains, so we came to visit them and have some exchanges."

Feng Xi's mind turned, and he decided to remain polite. After all, the other party had not expressed his opinion yet, so he might as well give it a try.

"Hehehe... We have no business talking to you lackeys of the princes, so leave quickly if you know what's best for you. Otherwise, this is where you will die!"

The woman laughed a few times, and suddenly her tone changed. Her words were filled with hatred that Feng Xi could feel, and a hint of... fear?
But no matter what the other party's mood was, he seemed to be determined not to see them.

Feng Xi pondered for a moment and continued to answer:
"The girl doesn't seem to be the real boss. I wonder if your father or brother is here? Feng is willing to talk to her."

(End of this chapter)